Death in Sarajevo

As preparations are made for the commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the death of Archduke Ferdinand in Sarajevo, the Hotel Europa prepares for a big EU event. But all is not well in the Hotel Europa, as all is not well in Bosnia Herzegovina or in modern Europe. The staff haven't been paid for 2 months and are planning to strike, the manager can't get the hotel's loan extended, a French actor rehearses his speech - a mixture of passion and pretension about the failure of Europe - in the presidential suite, while interviews about Bosnia's turbulent history and troubled present are being carried out on the roof. The only people seeming to do well are the thuggish owner of the stripper and gambling club in the basement and his cronies.

Lamija, the head receptionist, click-clacks through the hotel in her high heels, from the labyrinthine basement, where her mother works in the laundry and her one-night-stand from the previous night in the kitchen, to the reception, offices and hotel rooms. She is the heart of the movie, connected to the different players, trying to keep control while everything unravels around her, and she finally unravels as well. The camera tracks her from behind or the side, until a scene toward the end when she is betrayed, when we see her face on in full light, a revelation of a woman becoming undone.

On the rooftop, the guests being interviewed give a nuanced analysis of Bosnia-Herzegovina's situation, which were fascinating to me, but could be too complicated for those who aren't familiar with the history, until the final interviewee, a Serbian nationalist called Gavrilo Princip after the assassin, provokes a heated response from the journalist doing the interviews. As they bluntly state their views, the interaction moves from hostility to almost a mutual seduction - beautifully showing the ambivalent feelings of the the region.

The film deals with big issues in a completely human way, with sympathy, humor, balance and depth. The camera-work is fabulous, as is all the acting. I was enthralled throughout.